Photographs Don't Lie
by Hanon Nanami
Summary: Near ran away from the Wammy House after a fight with Mello. What does this have to do with a photograph? Read and find out! -


**Sorry if there are spelling errors! I did this kinda last minute, and just read it through quickly to see if I noticed anything out of place! Please review! ^-^**

The pale teen ran away from the Wammy House. It was raining heavily, but he didn't care. He was tired of all the high expectations everyone wanted out of him. He was tired of the harsh punches he received when he reached those accomplishments. He jumped a little as a clap of thunder resounded, only to be followed by a flash of threatening light. He really _hated_ storms.

It all started with a fight that happened earlier, but he couldn't think about that now. He had to keep running, constantly checking behind him to be sure that no one was following him. _It should take them about ten minutes for them to realize I'm gone, another five minutes for them to search the Wammy House, and about two minutes for them to actually come to the conclusion that I ran away._ The teen thought to himself as he ran.

_I have to find somewhere to stay for the night..it doesn't have to be dry, it just has to be safe._ He looked around him. It was a rather empty area, nothing but trees and long stretches of land. The grass all around consisted of flooded patches. He sighed softly to himself and took a seat under a tree with plenty of branches to help keep him dry. He pulled his backpack off his shoulder, and looked through the contents.

An extra change of clothes, some money he snuck away from Roger, and a picture. Near lightly picked the picture up and examined it. It was his favorite thing to look at when he was upset, or lonely. It was a picture of him as a baby, his parents holding him. His mother had a big smile on her face, her honey colored hair fell in waves around her shoulders. Her dark brown eyes shone brightly. She held him as his father put an arm around her. His green eyes filled with happiness, his black hair short and choppy. Near only heard stories of what happened to them, but he didn't know if they were true or not. After all, those stories came from Mello. His thoughts drifted back to the fight they had earlier.

_"I hate you! Just go do us all a favor, and die!" The blonde yelled at the younger teen, who casually sat and played with some dice._

"I rather enjoy living, thank you." He responded calmly, his voice void of all emotion like it always was.

"No one would have guessed it!" The blonde screamed. "You're always so fucking emotionless! If you enjoy living, then live dammit!" Mello kicked the dice and watched them scatter around the room.

"I will live how I wish to live, now please leave my room." Came the reply. The blonde seethed quietly in anger, before muttering sharply.

"I felt bad for your parents." That struck a nerve with Near. He stood up quickly, trying to still keep his walls up.

"Don't talk about my parents." Mello grinned. He knew he had him now.

"I

will_ talk about them! How they died a tragic death." The blonde grinned as Near's grey eyes widened._

"Y-You don't even know how they died..." His voice trailed off, and Mello found this the perfect times to strike.

"I heard it being discussed when you were first

thrown _onto the doorstep. How your mother killed herself shortly after you were born. How she found some spare rope and-"_

"Shut up!" Near practically screamed, covering his ears. He closed his eyes tightly, not wanting to see the sneering blonde.

"Your dad got drunk after that and dropped you off here, leaving you on the doorstep in the dead of winter!" Mello smirked. "Then he went and got in a car crash, practically a suicide. I guess no one wanted you, because we sure as hell don't want you here either!" The blonde snapped off a piece of chocolate with his teeth before making his way from the room, leaving a teary eyed Near left to himself.

Near curled up tighter under the tree, bringing his knees to his chest. He didn't know when he started to cry, but sure enough, tears began to streak his face. He winced as more thunder and lighting made itself known, and he whimpered. He looked at the picture again. They all looked so happy, would they really have done that? All because he was _born?_ No, surely Mello was lying to him! Yet he couldn't bring himself to believe that either. Surely no one would care if he was gone. Not just gone in the sense that he was out of sight, but gone from this world. Maybe he could join his parents, and prove that he wasn't a bother? But according to Mello, he was _always _a bother...

"Near!" He heard the faint call of his voice. With a sad smile, he shook his head slowly. _I'm hearing things...Mello would never come out here to find me. Especially in this storm._ Sure enough though, he heard the voice again, closer this time. "_Near!"_ It sounded concerned. _Now I _know_ that's not Mello. He's never concerned about anything._ He thought miserably to himself.

Looking at the picture once again, he began to rip it slowly in half. Not even half-way through, he heard a loud cracking sound above him and turned to look above him with wide eyes. A big branch snapped, one that could cause some serious damage. It was falling right for him, and he could only sit frozen in fear. He shut his eyes tightly, preparing for what was to come.

What he didn't expect however, was for something to slam against him from the side. His eyes shot open and he gasped in shock. He looked to his right to see the branch crashed against the ground, right where he was sitting. He looked above him, to see Mello. The blonde looked down with a mixture of anger and relief.

"M-Mello..." The gaze of the older teen hardened, and he kept his place above the rain-drenched boy.

"_What are you doing here, Near?" _He snapped in anger. "You're gonna get sick! Not to mention that everyone's worried about you! Did I mention yet that you almost got _killed?_" He shouted. Near remained wide-eyed and confused. _Mello...came back for me?_ He thought to himself in bewilderment. He was so absorbed in his own thoughts, he failed to notice the jacket that was being draped around his shoulders. "Come on Near, we're going home." Near nodded faintly, not quite realizing what was being said. He skimmed the area around them, and noticed a slightly torn photo on the ground. "Near...are you crying?"

New tears ran down his pale face as he slowly made his way to the old photo. He picked it up, examining it again. They still looked so happy, and he wanted to be part of that happiness. He wanted to _feel _happy for once.

"Mello..." Near turned around angrily, tears of sorrow and anger running freely from his grey eyes. "You should have let me die!" He shouted. Mello's blue eyes widen, taking in the boys words and emotions.

"Near, what are you talking about?" He asked faintly. Mello's eyes never left the boy as he approached him. With his head lowered, the pale teen sunk to the ground. He looked emotionally drained, and clutched the photo tightly in his hand. Mello leaned down and gently took the photo from Near, who didn't put up much of a fight. He looked at the picture, a suspicion gnawing at him. "Near, who are these people?" With his head still tilted to the ground, Near spoke softly.

"The baby is me. The other two, are my...p-parents." His voice faltered at the word, and Mello's eyes widened. His suspicions were true. He looked at the picture again, taking in the scenery. They all looked so happy, even the albino child they held in their arms. Snowy curls already covered the head of the smiling baby.

"Near, I never meant-" The picture was snatched from his hands harshly, and Near finished ripping it. Mello's eyes widened.

"Near! What the fuck!" Mello yelled, gathering the two halves of the picture that fluttered to the ground. He looked up as he seen Near starting to walk absently back in the direction of the Wammy House.

"My parents hated me. Mello even said so himself. Mello sighed in frustration, before firmly grabbing Near's wrist. He stopped, but didn't turn to meet the blonde's eyes.

"Near, your parents didn't hate you. They _loved _you!" Grey eyes still didn't meet the serious gaze of Mello. "I remember, it seemed so long ago. You were just about to turn three, and I heard your father speaking with Roger. They were talking about your mother." Mello stood up, slowly walking over to the boy that refused to face him. He hesitantly hugged the boy from behind, feeling the boy freeze by his touch.

Mello continued speaking. "Near, your parents loved you very much. They feared for you, _that's _why they had to get rid of you. Your father was telling Roger something about your mom. I didn't catch the whole thing, but she didn't kill herself. Someone _killed_ her, and your father was afraid for you. He gave you to the Wammy House hoping to keep you safe. You were crying, clutching his hand. I seen you then. You just looked so miserable, and you started crying harder when your dad left. He handed you this picture." Mello held up the two pieces of the crumbled photo. "Soon after that, I heard Roger telling you that your dad was killed. You were so young...you didn't understand...you didn't _want _to understand..." Mello's voice tailed off, and Near turned to face him slowly.

"Mello, you're a liar." Blue eyes widened. First in confusion, then in anger. He opened his mouth to yell, but Near continued to talk. "You're a liar, because I remember all of that. You said that I didn't understand, but I did. I was young, so I didn't grasp the situation, but I knew something happened when mom didn't come back home. I knew my dad would never let me go. Still, your constant tales about them hating me...just made it's way into my mind. I learned to belive it."

Near turned around and hugged Mello tightly. The blonde gave a sad smile for the boy, before lifting him up. _He's so light, does he ever eat?_ He wondered to himself. Slipping the picture into his pocket, vowing to himself that he'd fix it later, he carried to boy back to Wammy's.


End file.
